Float valve



April 29 1924. 1,492,272

J L. L. SPERLING FLOAT VALVE Filed Nov. 5, 1922 Patented Apr. 29, i924.

Nl iff LEON L. SPKERLING, OFKASHTON, NEBRASKA.

FLOAT VALVE.

Application led November 8, 1922. Serial No. 598,844.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, LEON L. SPERLING, a citizen of the United States, residing at Ashton, in the county of Sherman and State of Nebraska, -have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Float Valves, kof which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to float valves for automatically controlling the supply of water to a tank and has for its object the provision of a device of such construction and arrangement of parts that the valve will be normally seated and in the event of the float arm being broken at its pivotalsupport, the valve cannot be opened and draining of the supply cistern will be prevented. Another object of the invention is to provide a construction which will permit access to the valve for grinding the same when neces sary without requiring a disassembling of the parts. Other incidental objects of the inventionwill appear in the course of the following description, and the invention resides in certain` novel features which will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the annexed drawing:

Figure 1 is a side elevationrof` my improved -valve showing it applied to a stockwatering tank:

Fig. 2 is an enlarged central longitudinal section through the valve, and 'f Fig. 8 is a plan view of the same. u

In the drawing, the reference numeral 1 indicates a tank which may be of any desired form or size. -The tank illustrated is an open top structure from which animals may drink, but it will be understood that the in vention is applicable to any form of tank and may be applied to tanks having valved outlets so that it may be employed in tanks which are frequently relieved of theircontents and then .immediatelyautomatically re-filled. The supply pipe 2 may lead from a cistern or any source of supply and has its end secured in one wall of the tank near the top of the same, as clearly shown. Upon the end of this supply pipe within the tank is secured a casting 3 constituting a valve casing or body, the said casting having a yoke-like extension 4 within the tank constructed with an open top and bottom, as clearly shown in Figs. 2 and 3. A web 5 is formed transversely in the castin in spaced relation to the inlet porter nippe 6 which is engaged upon the end of the supply pipe,

and in the said web 5 is anoutlet port 7 over which the valve 8 normally seats. The valve is preferably a metallic disk having ay flat face adapted to abut the inner wall of the web 5 and cover the port 7, as clearlyshown in Fig. y2, and a stemr9 projects from the opposite face of the disk to lit through an opening 10 formed in the lower end of a hanger 11 which is pivotally secured, as at l2, in the upper portion of the casting 3. The stem 9 is retained in the hanger 11 by a pin13 inserted through the stem adjacent the inner side of they hanger, and a'notch 14 is formed in the extremity of the stem, as clearly shown. Formed centrally in the flat face of the valve disk is a recess or socket 15 in which is loosely engaged the 'inner end of a plunger 16 which is slidably fitted through an opening 17 inthe outer'endfV or-V tion of the yoke 4, and upon the said p unger is a stop flange 18 which is adapted to abut the outer end portion of the yoke and thereby limit the outward movement of the yplunger so that it cannot be accidentally displaced and lost.k A supporting bridge 19 is formed across the yoke below the plunger and supports the'same, while above the plunger a cross bar 20 is provided in the yoke to prevent upward movement of the plunger,

. thel members 19 and 20serving to maintain the plunger in its operative position in cooperation with theopening 17'` in the end of the yoke. The float arm 21 is bifurcated or forked, as shown at 22, at its inner end and the side members of the fork or bifurcation are pivoted upon the outer sides of the casting 3 by engaging upon the ends of the cross bar 20. bifurcation 22, lan upstanding linger 23 is formed upon the float arm, and this finger is adapted to ride upon the outer end'of the plunger, as clearly shown. A float 24 of anyk convenient or preferred form is suspended on the free end `of the float arm and 'will follow the variation in the level of theV water in the tank so that a vertical pivotal movement will be imparted to the oat arm.

The casting 3 which forms the body or casing of the valve is preferably constructed in its under side with a sediment chamber 25 closed by a plug 26, as shown in Fig. 2. If the plug 26 be removed, any sediment which may havel collected in the chamber may be easily removed and clogging of the valve will be thereby overcome.

It will be readily understood from the At the base of the forkor .foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, that. the pressure of the water is exerted against the valve 8 so as to hold it to its seat and normally, therefore, cut-0E the flow. Should the level of the water in the tank fall so that there would be a noticeable descent of the float 24, the float arm will swing downwardly upon its pivot 20 and the finger 23 will thereupon ride across the end of the plunger 16 and push the plunger inwardly, as shown by the` dotted lines in Fig. 2, so that the valve 8 will be moved from its seat and be carried toward the inlet port of the valve casing by the swinging of the hanger 11. The water may then escape through the port 7 and discharge into the tank through the open bottom of the yoke 4. As the level of the water rises in the tank, the float, of course, will rise and the float arm will be swung upwardly so that the pressure of the finger 23 upon the outer yend of the plunger 16 will be relieved and the pressure of the iniowing Water will then carry the valve againstvits seat so that the fiow will'be cut off. Should the float arm be broken so that it will depend from the casting 3 and carry the finger 23 below the plunger, the pressure of the water will hold the valve to its seat so that the cistern cannot be drained and overflow of the tank with consequent waste of water wil be prevented. Should it be necessary to re-grind the valve, the flow of water through the supply pipe 2 is cut-off by the closing of a main supply valve adjacent the point of supply, after which the casting 3 may be removed from the endl of the said pipe and a screw driver or other turning tool inserted through the inlet port of the casting and engaged in the notch lli in the stem of the valve. Anyl suitable abradant may be then easily applied to the iat side of the valve through the yoke 4 and the valve rotated while held in contact with' its seat so that its face will be quickly ground and a new finish imparted thereto. My device is very simple and compact in the construction and arrangement of its parts, will operate readily in response to a fall in the level of the water in the tank so that a constant supply may be maintained inthe tank Without any attention upon the part of the lthe plunger through the open topi of the exerted through the yoke 4: and pressure plunger against the valve so'as to unseat the same and establish normal operation. It will be readily noted, upon reference to Fig. 2 incre particularly, that the construction of the parts is such that the several elements maybe easily and rapidly as-V sembled in their proper operative relation and the device may, therefore, beproduced rapidly and at a low cost.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is: y

1. The combination of a valve casing having an inlet port in one side and an outlet port in its opposite side, an open bottom yoke extending laterally from the outlet side of the casing, a valve mounted Jfory free movement within the casing and normally' seating over the outlet port, a bridge extending across the lower portion of the yoke, a free plunger slidably resting on said bridge and extending at its outer end through the yoke and having its inner end abutting the valve, a cross bar in the yoke above the plungeig'and a Heat-controlled arm pivoted on the ends of said cross bar and riding across the outer end of the plunger whereby to unseat the valve.

2. The combination of a valve casing having an inlet port in one side and an outlet port in its opposite side, a valve mounted for free movement within the casing and normally seating over the outlet port, an open bottom yoke extending laterally from the outlet side of the casing, a pluger slidably mounted in said yoke in axial alinement with the outlet port and having its inner end bearing against the valve, a float arm pivotally mounted upon the yoke, and a finger carried by and rising from said oat varm and riding across the outer end of the plunger to unseat the'valve.

In testimony whereof l aiix my signature,

LEONI... SPERLING. [14s.] 

